Memory card

ABSTRACT

A memory card and an electronic system including the memory card. The memory card includes: a substrate having two pairs of edges, in which the edges of each pair face each other; a plurality of first row terminals that are arranged adjacent to an edge at an insertion side of the substrate and include a first voltage power terminal; a plurality of second row terminals that are spaced farther apart from the edge at the insertion side than the plurality of first row terminals and include a power terminal of a second voltage. According to the memory card, efficient use of an area may be maximized and an electrically stable power supply may be provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/323,582, filed on Jan. 3, 2017, which is aNational Stage Entry of PCT/KR2015/006751 filed on Jul. 1, 2015, whichclaims the benefits of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2014-0082710,filed on Jul. 2, 2014 and No. 10-2014-0104173, filed on Aug. 12, 2014,in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of which areincorporated herein in their entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND

The inventive concept relates to a memory card and an electronic systemincluding the memory card, and more particularly, to a memory cardcapable of maximizing efficient use of an area and providing anelectrically stable power supply and an electronic system including thememory card.

As a memory card is easy to store high-capacity data and to carry, itmay be widely used in mobile phones or laptop computers. A memory cardvaries in size according to necessity, and according to the demand forcompact high-speed high-capacity memory cards, memory cards havingsmaller sizes, higher storage speeds, and greater storage capacities arebeing developed and released. Meanwhile, as memory standards with afaster storage speed are required, methods of maintaining a compact sizeof memory cards and enabling a stable power supply and a high-speedoperation need to be examined in various aspects.

SUMMARY

The inventive concept provides a memory card capable of maximizingefficient use of an area and an electrically stable electrical powersupply.

According to an aspect of the inventive concept, there is provided amemory card including: a substrate having two pairs of edges, in whichthe edges of each pair face each other; a plurality of first rowterminals that are arranged adjacent to an edge at an insertion side ofthe substrate and include a first voltage power terminal for applying afirst voltage; a plurality of second row terminals that are spacedfarther apart from the edge at the insertion side than the plurality offirst row terminals and include a second voltage power terminal forapplying a second voltage, wherein a first edge from among two edgesadjacent to the edge at the insertion side of the substrate extends in adirection that is substantially perpendicular to the edge at theinsertion side, and a second edge facing the first edge includes an arcportion in which a passive device is provided, and a first end of thepassive device is electrically connected to the second voltage powerterminal.

The plurality of second row terminals may include a card detectionterminal, and the card detection terminal may be electrically connectedto a second end of the passive device. The card detection terminal maybe adjacent to the arc portion, and the second voltage power terminalmay be adjacent to the card detection terminal. The card detectionterminal may be a grounded terminal. The passive device may be acapacitor.

The plurality of second row terminals may be closer to a center of thememory card than the plurality of first row terminals with respect to adirection perpendicular to the edge at the insertion side, which is afirst direction.

The second voltage may be lower than the first voltage. The memory cardmay further include a memory controller and a non-volatile memorydevice. The first voltage power terminal may be configured to supplypower to the non-volatile memory device, and the second voltage powerterminal may be configured to supply power to the memory controller.

According to another aspect of the inventive concept, there is provideda memory card including: a substrate having two pairs of edges, in whichthe edges of each pair face each other; a plurality of first rowterminals that are arranged adjacent to an edge at an insertion side ofthe substrate and include a first voltage power terminal for applying afirst voltage; a plurality of second row terminals that are spacedfarther apart from the edge at the insertion side than the plurality offirst row terminals and include a second voltage power terminal forapplying a second voltage, wherein a distance between a center of thesecond row terminals in a direction perpendicular to the edge at theinsertion side, which is a first direction, and a center of the memorycard is 20% of a length of the memory card in the first direction orless.

The second row terminals may include a pair of data input terminals anda pair of data output terminals, and the pair of data input terminalsmay be shielded by a pair of first ground terminals. Also, the pair ofdata output terminals may be shielded by a pair of second groundterminals. Also, one ground terminal may be shared by the pair of thefirst ground terminals and the pair of the second ground terminals.

The second row terminals further include a reference clock terminal, andthe reference clock terminal may be spaced apart from the data inputterminals with the first ground terminal interposed therebetween or maybe spaced apart from the data output terminals with the second groundterminal interposed therebetween. The second row terminals may furtherinclude a card detection terminal disposed at a side of the referenceclock terminal with a second voltage power terminal interposedtherebetween. The card detection terminal may be a grounded terminal.The memory card may further include a passive device. A first end of thepassive device may be connected to the card detection terminal, and asecond end of the passive device may be connected to the second voltagepower terminal. A front end of the second voltage power terminal towardthe edge at the insertion side may be closer to the edge at theinsertion side than a front end of the card detection terminal towardthe edge at the insertion side.

A length of the data input terminals in the first direction may beshorter than a length of the first ground terminals in the firstdirection. A front end of the first ground terminals toward the edge atthe insertion side may be closer to the edge at the insertion side thana front end of the data input terminals toward the edge at the insertionside.

A length of the data output terminals in the first direction may beshorter than a length of the second ground terminals in the firstdirection. A front end of the second ground terminals toward the edge atthe insertion side may be closer to the edge at the insertion side thana front end of the data output terminals toward the edge at theinsertion side.

According to another aspect of the inventive concept, there is provideda memory card including: a substrate having two pairs of edges, in whichthe edges of each pair face each other; a plurality of first rowterminals that are arranged adjacent to an edge at an insertion side ofthe substrate and include a first voltage power terminal for applying afirst voltage; a plurality of second row terminals that are spacedfarther apart from the edge at the insertion side than the plurality offirst row terminals and include a second voltage power terminal forapplying a second voltage, wherein a first edge and a second edgeadjacent to the edge at the insertion side are provided, and the secondrow terminals sequentially include, from the first edge to the secondedge, a card detection terminal, the second voltage power terminal, areference clock terminal, a first ground terminal, a pair of first dataterminals, a second ground terminal, a pair of second data terminals,and a third ground terminal.

One pair from among the pair of first data terminals and the pair ofsecond data terminals may be a pair of data input terminals, and theother pair may be a pair of data output terminals. A length of the carddetection terminal in a direction perpendicular to the edge at theinsertion side, which is a first direction, may be the same as a lengthof the second voltage power terminal. A distance between the edge at theinsertion side and a front end of the card detection terminal may be thesame as a distance between the edge at the insertion side and a frontend of the second voltage power terminal.

A length of the card detection terminal in a direction perpendicular tothe edge at the insertion side, which is a first direction, may belonger than a length of the second voltage power terminal in the firstdirection, and a distance between the edge at the insertion side and afront end of the card detection terminal may be the same as a distancebetween the edge at the insertion side and a front end of the secondvoltage power terminal.

A length of the card detection terminal in a direction perpendicular tothe edge at the insertion side, which is a first direction, may belonger than a length of the second voltage power terminal in the firstdirection, and a distance between the edge at the insertion side and afront end of the card detection terminal may be shorter than a distancebetween the edge at the insertion side and a front end of the secondvoltage power terminal. A distance between the edge at the insertionside and a rear end of the card detection terminal may be greater than adistance between the edge at the insertion side and a rear end of thesecond voltage power terminal.

A length of the card detection terminal in a direction perpendicular tothe edge at the insertion side, which is a first direction, may beshorter than a length of the second voltage power terminal in the firstdirection, and a distance between the edge at the insertion side and afront end of the card detection terminal may be the same as a distancebetween the edge at the insertion side and a front end of the secondvoltage power terminal.

A length of the card detection terminal in a direction perpendicular tothe edge at the insertion side, which is a first direction, may belonger than a length of the second voltage power terminal in the firstdirection, and a distance between the edge at the insertion side and afront end of the card detection terminal may be shorter than a distancebetween the edge at the insertion side and a front end of the secondvoltage power terminal. A distance between the edge at the insertionside and a rear end of the card detection terminal may be the same as adistance between the edge at the insertion side and a rear end of thesecond voltage power terminal.

According to another aspect of the inventive concept, there is providedan electronic system including: a controller; an input/output unit viawhich data is input or output; a memory unit that is capable of storingdata; an interface unit via which data is transmitted to an externaldevice; and a bus that connects the controller, the input/output unit,the memory unit, and the interface unit to communicate with one another,wherein the memory unit includes the memory card described above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept will be more clearlyunderstood from the following detailed description taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a memory card according to anembodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view illustrating a memory card and someof internal components of the memory card according to an embodiment ofthe inventive concept;

FIG. 3 is an equivalent circuit diagram illustrating a connectionbetween a passive device, a card detection terminal, and a secondvoltage power terminal;

FIGS. 4A through 4E are schematic views illustrating memory cardsaccording to embodiments of the inventive concept;

FIGS. 5A through 5C are respectively a front view, a left side view, anda rear view of a memory card according to an embodiment of the inventiveconcept;

FIGS. 6A through 6C are auxiliary views illustrating a structure of thememory card in detail;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating a system that uses a memory cardaccording to embodiments of the inventive concept;

FIG. 8 is a detailed schematic view illustrating a socket of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a coupling manner between a memory cardand a socket according to an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 10 is a partial expanded view illustrating a first notch portion ofthe memory card of FIG. 9 in detail;

FIG. 11 is a schematic view illustrating a structure of a memory cardaccording to the inventive concept;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a memory device including amemory card according to the inventive concept;

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic system including amemory card according to the inventive concept; and

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating an implementation example of anetwork for a server system that includes an electronic device accordingto an embodiment of the inventive concept.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The inventive concept will now be described more fully with reference tothe accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of theinventive concept are shown. The inventive concept may, however, beembodied in many different forms, and should not be construed as beinglimited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodimentsare provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, andwill fully convey the concept of the inventive concept to those skilledin the art. Like reference numerals denote like elements throughout thespecification. Furthermore, various elements and regions areschematically illustrated in the drawings. Thus, the inventive conceptis not limited by the relative sizes or intervals illustrated in theattached drawings.

Terms including ordinal numbers such as ‘first’, ‘second’, etc. are usedto describe various elements but the elements should not be defined bythese terms. The terms are used only for distinguishing one element fromanother element. For example, without departing from the spirit andscope of the inventive concept, a first component may be referred to asa second component, or a second component may be referred to as a firstcomponent.

The terms used in the present specification are merely used to describeparticular embodiments, and are not intended to limit the inventiveconcept. An expression used in the singular encompasses the expressionof the plural, unless it has a clearly different meaning in the context.In the present specification, it is to be understood that the terms suchas unlluding” or “having,” etc., are intended to indicate the existenceof the features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, orcombinations thereof disclosed in the specification, and are notintended to preclude the possibility that one or more other features,numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof mayexist or may be added.

Unless defined differently, all terms used in the description includingtechnical and scientific terms have the same meanings as generallyunderstood by those skilled in the art. Terms commonly used and definedin dictionaries should be construed as having the same meanings as inthe associated technical context of the inventive concept, and unlessdefined apparently in the description, these terms are not ideally orexcessively construed as having formal meanings.

As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations ofone or more of the associated listed items. Expressions such as “atleast one of,” when preceding a list of elements, modify the entire listof elements and do not modify the individual elements of the list.

FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a memory card 100 according to anembodiment of the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 1, the memory card 100 may have two pairs of edges, inwhich the edges of each pair face each other. The two pairs of edges mayinclude an edge 121 at an insertion side where the memory card 100 isinserted into a socket, a first edge 123 and a second edge 125 thatadjoin the edge 121 at the insertion side, and a third edge 127 facingthe edge 121 at the insertion side. In other words, one of the two pairsof edges include the edge 121 at the insertion side and the third edge127 and the other of the two pairs of edges include the first edge 123and the second edge 125. The edge 121 at the insertion side and thethird edge 127 may be parallel to each other.

The second edge 125 may extend in a direction perpendicular to adirection in which the edge 121 at the insertion side extends. Also, thesecond edge 125 may extend only in a single direction. Also, the firstedge 123 may have both portions that are parallel to the second edge 125and portions that are not parallel to the second edge 125.

Corners having predetermined radii of curvature may be between the edges121, 123, 125, and 127. The corners may have identical or differentshapes.

The edge 121 at the insertion side is an edge at a side where the memorycard 100 is inserted into a socket, and when the memory card 100 isinserted into the socket, the edge 121 at the insertion side enters thesocket first from among the edges 121, 123, 125, and 127, and leaves thesocket last from among the edges 121, 123, 125, and 127 when the memorycard 100 is withdrawn from the socket. In order for the memory card 100to easily enter the socket, a width of the edge 121 at the insertionside may be determined in consideration of a predetermined clearance.

Terminals for electrically connecting semiconductor devices in thememory card 100 and a host may be arranged adjacent to the edge 121 atthe insertion side. The host may be for example, a mobile phone, adesktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet PC, a game player, anavigation device, or a digital camera, but the inventive concept is notlimited thereto. Also, an adapter for interfacing may be interposedbetween the memory card 100 and the host.

[Pin Arrangements]

The terminals may be arranged in two rows as illustrated in FIG. 1. Thatis, a plurality of first row terminals 130 and a plurality of second rowterminals 140 may be arranged adjacent to the edge 121 at the insertionside of a substrate 110.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view illustrating a memory card 100 andsome of internal components of the memory card 100, according to anembodiment of the inventive concept. Although one non-volatile memorydevice 194 is illustrated in FIG. 2, it will be obvious to one ofordinary skill in the art that two or more non-volatile memory devicesmay be mounted.

Referring to FIG. 2, the first row terminals 130 may include a firstvoltage power terminal 131 for applying a first voltage that may be, forexample, between about 3.0 V and about 3.5 V. The first voltage may besupplied to semiconductor devices that operate at a low speed amongsemiconductor devices in the memory card 100. For example, the firstvoltage may be supplied to the non-volatile memory devices 194 in thememory card 100.

The second row terminals 140 may include a second voltage power terminal141 for applying a second voltage that may be, for example, betweenabout 1.5 V and about 2.2 V. The second voltage may be supplied tosemiconductor devices that operate at a high speed among semiconductordevices in the memory card 100. For example, the second voltage may besupplied to a memory controller 192 in the memory card 100.

Although a connecting wiring between the memory controller 192 and thesecond voltage power terminal 141 and a connection wiring between thenon-volatile memory device 194 and the first voltage power terminal 131are illustrated, it will be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the artthat wiring between respective elements is not limited thereto. Thememory controller 192 and the non-volatile memory devices 194 may alsobe connected to other elements via wirings in various manners.

In the present embodiment, the first row terminals 130 are closer to theedge 121 at the insertion side than the second row terminals 140 are,and thus, power may be supplied to the first row terminals 130 beforebeing supplied to the second row terminals 140. In other words, as thememory card 100 is inserted, power of the first voltage may be suppliedto the non-volatile memory devices 194 in advance via the first voltagepower terminal 131 included in the first row terminals 130. In addition,a ground terminal 133 is also connected to a host in advance so as toform a power circuit and a ground circuit, via which the entire memorycard 100 may be operated, before power is supplied to the memorycontroller 192, so that an overall operation of the memory card 100 isprepared.

In addition, as the memory controller 192 operates at high speed, aconsiderable amount of heat may be generated, and in this case, adequateheat dissipation may be a problem. If the memory controller 192 isdisposed close to the second voltage power terminal 141 as in theembodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, heat generated in the memorycontroller 192 may be quickly dissipated through the second voltagepower terminal 141 and a card detection terminal 143.

Referring to FIG. 1 again, the first row terminals 130 may be arrangedrelatively closer to the edge 121 at the insertion side than the secondrow terminals 140 are. That is, the second row terminals 140 may bespaced apart from the edge 121 at the insertion side by a greaterdistance than the first row terminals 130.

Although two first row terminals 130 and ten second row terminals 140are illustrated in FIG. 1, the number, position, shape, and size ofterminals are not limited thereto and may vary according to necessity.Also, some of the first and second row terminals 130 and 140 may becoated with a solder resist (SR) layer and may not be exposed to theoutside. Some of the terminals that are not exposed may be, for example,test terminals.

The first row terminals 130 and the second row terminals 140 may eachinclude one or more ground terminals. For example, the first rowterminals 130 may include a ground terminal 133.

Also, the second row terminals 140 may include ground terminals 144.Also, the second row terminals 140 may have a pair of data inputterminals 145 in and a pair of data output terminals 145 out. Althoughthe data input terminals 145 in are illustrated as being disposed in amore central portion of the memory card 100 compared to the pair of dataoutput terminals 145 out, positions of the data input and outputterminals 145 in and 145 out may be changed.

The data input terminals 145 in may be electrically shielded via a pairof ground terminals 144 a and 144 b. Also, the data output terminals 145out may be electrically shielded via the pair of ground terminals 144 band 144 c. Data may be input or output more stably due to the shielding.

Also, as illustrated in FIG. 1, one ground terminal 144 b may be sharedboth in the pair of ground terminals 144 a and 144 b for shielding thedata input terminals 145 in and the pair of ground terminals 144 b and144 c for shielding the data output terminals 145 out. Selectively, apair of ground terminals for shielding the data input terminals 145 inand a pair of ground terminals for shielding the data output terminals145 out may not share a ground terminal.

The pair of the data input terminals 145 in may have the samemeasurements as each other. Also, the pair of the data output terminals145 out may have the same measurements as each other. Also, the datainput terminals 145 in and the data output terminals 145 out may havethe same measurements as each other.

The pair of the data input terminals 145 in may be maintained betweenthe ground terminals 144 a and 144 b with respect to a directionperpendicular to the edge 121 at the insertion side (hereinafterreferred to as a first direction). Also, the pair of data outputterminals 145 out may be maintained between the ground terminals 144 band 144 c with respect to the first direction.

A length of the data input terminals 145 in in the first direction maybe shorter than a length of the ground terminals 144 a and 144 b in thefirst direction. In particular, front ends of the ground terminals 144 aand 144 b at the edge 121 at the insertion side may be closer to theedge 121 at the insertion side than front ends of the data inputterminals 145 in at the edge 121 at the insertion side.

A length of the data output terminals 145 out in the first direction maybe shorter than a length of the ground terminals 144 b and 144 c in thefirst direction. In particular, front ends of the ground terminals 144 band 144 c at the edge 121 at the insertion side may be closer to theedge 121 at the insertion side than front ends of the data outputterminals 145 out at the edge 121 at the insertion side.

A distance between rear ends of the ground terminals 144 a, 144 b, and144 b opposite to the front ends thereof and the edge 121 at theinsertion side may be equal to or greater than a distance between rearends of the data input terminals 145 in and the data output terminals145 out and the edge 121 at the insertion side.

The second row terminals 140 may be disposed in a center portion of orin proximity to the memory card 100. By disposing the second rowterminals 140 as described above, distances from the second rowterminals 140 to the memory controller 192 and to the non-volatilememory devices 194 may be reduced, and routing may also be simplified.Thus, high speed operation and convenience in terms of circuit designmay be achieved.

In particular, by disposing the second voltage power terminal 141 in acenter portion of or in proximity to the memory card 100, the secondvoltage power terminal 141 may be a relatively close distance to thememory controller 192 regardless of which portion of the memory card 100the memory controller 192 is disposed in, and thus, a power supply pathmay be shortened.

For example, with respect to the first direction, a distance d between acenter of the second row terminals 140 and a center M of the memory card100 may be 20% of a length L of the memory card 100 in the firstdirection. The second row terminals 140 may have various lengths in thefirst direction, and moreover, positions of front ends and rear ends ofthe second row terminals 140 may not be uniform, and the center of thesecond row terminals 140 is defined as a center of either the data inputterminals 145 in or the data output terminals 145 out that are closestto the edge 121 at the insertion side.

By configuring the memory card 100 as described above, a distancebetween the memory controller 192 and the non-volatile memory devices194 and the data input terminals 145 in and the data output terminals145 out may be minimized no matter where the memory controller 192 andthe non-volatile memory devices 194 are disposed. Accordingly, not onlya high-speed operation is enabled but a degree of freedom in terms ofdesign may be secured.

Also, with respect to the first direction, the second row terminals 140may be closer to the center M of the memory card 100 than the first rowterminals 130. The first row terminals 130 may be closer to the edge 121at the insertion side than the second row terminals 140.

The second row terminals 140 have a reference clock terminal 147. Thereference clock terminal 147 may be provided with a clock signal havinga frequency of, for example, about 26 MHz.

Also, the second voltage power terminal 141 may be provided beside thereference clock terminal 147. Accordingly, the reference clock terminal147 may be electrically shielded from signal input and output ofadjacent terminals, for example, the data input and output terminals 145in and 145 out, via the ground terminal 144 a and the second voltagepower terminal 141, and thus a stable operation is enabled.

Also, a distance from the reference clock terminal 147 to the memorycontroller 192 may be minimized for a high-speed operation. A positionof the memory controller 192 may be varied according to design of thememory card 100, and thus the reference clock terminal 147 may bedisposed at a center of the memory card 100 as much as possible. In thisregard, the reference clock terminal 147 may be disposed at a morecentral position of the memory card 100 than the card detection terminal143, which will be described later, or the second voltage power terminal141.

The card detection terminal 143 may be disposed in a lateral directionof the second voltage power terminal 141. The card detection terminal143 is used to allow a host to determine a type of the memory card 100.In particular, the card detection terminal 143 may be electricallyconnected to a ground line of the memory card 100.

By using a grounded terminal as the card detection terminal 143 insteadof data input and output terminals and allowing a host to receive aground signal from a socket terminal at a position of the card detectionterminal 143 so as to determine a card type, accuracy in terms ofrecognition of card types is remarkably increased to reduce recognitionerror, and moreover, a data input and output process for recognizing acard type may be omitted, thereby increasing recognition speed.

Although the card detection terminal 143 is disposed to be closest tothe first edge 123 among the second row terminals 140, and the secondvoltage power terminal 141 is disposed along a lateral direction of thecard detection terminal 143 in FIG. 1, the positions of the carddetection terminal 143 and the second voltage power terminal 141 may beexchanged.

A lateral protrusion which is similar to the shape of a shark fin may beformed in a lateral direction of the second row terminals 140. Shapes ofthe lateral protrusion will be described in detail later.

A passive device 170 may be formed in the lateral protrusion. Thepassive device 170 may be, for example, at least one of a resistor, acapacitor, an inductor, a thermistor, an oscillator, a ferrite bead, anantenna, a varistor, and a crystal. However, the passive device 170 isnot limited thereto and may also be other passive device.

In order to supply high-quality power, an input end of power may begrounded in parallel via a capacitor. Thus, the passive device 170 maybe particularly a capacitor, and one end of the passive device 170 maybe connected to the card detection terminal 143, and the other end ofthe passive device 170 may be connected to the second voltage powerterminal 141.

FIG. 3 is an equivalent circuit diagram illustrating a connectionbetween the passive device 170, the card detection terminal 143, and thesecond voltage power terminal 141.

Referring to FIG. 3, the second voltage power terminal 141 may beconnected to internal circuits to supply power of the second voltage,and may be connected to the passive device 170 which is a capacitor, inparallel. Also, the other end of the passive device 170 may be grounded.

The card detection terminal 143 which is a ground terminal used in carddetection may be used in the above grounding. As routing to anadditional ground end is not necessary for the grounding, the entirerouting may be simplified.

Furthermore, by accommodating the passive device 170 such as a capacitorin the lateral protrusion, the entire area of the memory card 100 may beefficiently used. Also, as the card detection terminal 143 connected toone end of the passive device 170 as a ground terminal and the secondvoltage power terminal 141, connected to the other end of the passivedevice 170, are disposed adjacent to the passive device 170, routing issimplified. Moreover, as the card detection terminal 143 and the secondvoltage power terminal 141 are arranged at a short distance from eachother, a stable supply of high-quality power is enabled.

Referring to FIG. 1 again, the second voltage power terminal 141 may bedifferent from the card detection terminal 143 in terms of size, shape,and position.

In particular, a position of a front end of the second voltage powerterminal 141 at the edge 121 at the insertion side and a position of afront end of the card detection terminal 143 at the edge 121 at theinsertion side may be different. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the positionof the front end of the second voltage power terminal 141 at the edge121 at the insertion side may be closer to the edge 121 at the insertionside than the position of the front end of the card detection terminal143 at the edge 121 at the insertion side.

If socket terminals that are at a host and connected to the plurality ofthe second row terminals 140 are arranged in parallel in a horizontaldirection, when the memory card 100 is inserted, the second voltagepower terminal 141, whose front end is closer to the edge 121 at theinsertion side, first contacts the socket terminals than the carddetection terminal 143.

Accordingly, power may be supplied to the memory controller 192 (seeFIG. 2) in advance, and a memory card may be booted in advance beforerecognizing a type of the memory card at the host, thus enabling a quickoperation.

Also, as illustrated in FIG. 2, no terminal is formed in the firstdirection of the second voltage power terminal 141. In other words, noneof the first row terminals 130 are disposed in the first direction ofthe second voltage power terminal 141. Thus, when the memory card 100 isinserted, a socket terminal corresponding to the second voltage powerterminal 141 does not contact other terminals of the memory card 100unnecessarily, and thus, unnecessary noise in a signal pad may beprevented.

FIGS. 4A through 4E are schematic views illustrating memory cards 100 a,100 b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e according to embodiments of the inventiveconcept.

Referring to FIG. 4A, lengths of a second voltage power terminal 141 anda card detection terminal 143 a in the first direction are identical.Also, positions of front ends of the second voltage power terminal 141and the card detection terminal 143 a at the edge 121 at the insertionside are the same. In other words, a distance between the edge 121 atthe insertion side and the front end of the card detection terminal 143a is the same as a distance between the edge 121 at the insertion sideand the front end of the second voltage power terminal 141.

When the second voltage power terminal 141 and the card detectionterminal 143 a are configured as illustrated in FIG. 4A, the secondvoltage power terminal 141 and the card detection terminal 143 a maysimultaneously contact socket terminals, and the card detection terminal143 a which is a ground terminal and other ground terminals 144 maysimultaneously contact the socket terminals, and thus mutualinterference between terminals due to noise may be minimized.Furthermore, as a rear end of the card detection terminal 143 a isaligned with a rear end of the second voltage power terminal 141,overtravel, which refers to deviation of the card detection terminal 143a from a corresponding position of a socket terminal, may be minimized.

Referring to FIG. 4B, a length of a power terminal 141 of a secondvoltage in the first direction is greater than a length of a carddetection terminal 143 b in the first direction. Also, a distancebetween the edge 121 at the insertion side and a front end of the carddetection terminal 143 b is the same as a distance between the edge 121at the insertion side and the front end of the second voltage powerterminal 141.

When the second voltage power terminal 141 and the card detectionterminal 143 b are configured as illustrated in FIG. 4B, the secondvoltage power terminal 141 and the card detection terminal 143 b maysimultaneously contact socket terminals, and the card detection terminal143 a which is a ground terminal and other ground terminals 144 maysimultaneously contact the socket terminals, and thus, mutualinterference between terminals due to noise may be minimized.Furthermore, as a rear end of the card detection terminal 143 b extendsfarther than a position of a rear end of the second voltage powerterminal 141, overtravel which refers to deviation of the card detectionterminal 143 n from a corresponding position of a socket terminal may befurther minimized.

Referring to FIG. 4C, a length of a card detection terminal 143 c in thefirst direction is shorter than a length of a second voltage powerterminal 141. Also, a distance between the edge 121 at the insertionside and a front end of the card detection terminal 143 c is the same asa distance between the edge 121 at the insertion side and a front end ofthe second voltage power terminal 141.

Also, a distance between the edge 121 at the insertion side and a rearend of the card detection terminal 143 c is smaller than a distancebetween the edge 121 at the insertion side and a rear end of the secondvoltage power terminal 141.

When the second voltage power terminal 141 and the card detectionterminal 143 c are configured as illustrated in FIG. 4C, the secondvoltage power terminal 141 and the card detection terminal 143 c maysimultaneously contact socket terminals, and the card detection terminal143 a which is a ground terminal and other ground terminals 144 maysimultaneously contact the socket terminals, and thus, mutualinterference between terminals due to noise may be minimized.

Referring to FIG. 4D, a length of a card detection terminal 143 d in thefirst direction is longer than a length of a second voltage powerterminal 141. Also, a distance between the edge 121 at the insertionside and a front end of the card detection terminal 143 d is smallerthan a distance between the edge 121 at the insertion side and a frontend of the second voltage power terminal 141.

Also, a distance between the edge 121 at the insertion side and a rearend of the card detection terminal 143 d is the same as a distancebetween the edge 121 at the insertion side and a rear end of the secondvoltage power terminal 141.

When the second voltage power terminal 141 and the card detectionterminal 143 d are configured as illustrated in FIG. 4D, the carddetection terminal 143 d may preferentially contact socket terminals sothat a host may perform card recognition, thus enabling a quick responseof the host.

Furthermore, as the rear end of the card detection terminal 143 d iswithdrawn to a position of the rear end of the second voltage powerterminal 141, overtravel which refers to deviation of the card detectionterminal 143 d from a corresponding position of a socket terminal may beminimized.

Referring to FIG. 4E, a length of the card detection terminal 143 e inthe first direction is longer than a length of a power terminal 141 of asecond voltage. Also, a distance between the edge 121 at the insertionside and a front end of the card detection terminal 143 e is smallerthan a distance between the edge 121 at the insertion side and a frontend of the second voltage power terminal 141.

Also, a distance between the edge 121 at the insertion side and a rearend of the card detection terminal 143 e is greater than a distancebetween the edge 121 at the insertion side and a rear end of the secondvoltage power terminal 141.

When the second voltage power terminal 141 and the card detectionterminal 143 e are configured as illustrated in FIG. 4E, the carddetection terminal 143 e may preferentially contact socket terminals sothat a host may perform card recognition, thus enabling a quick responseof the host.

Furthermore, as the rear end of the card detection terminal 143 eextends farther than a position of the rear end of the second voltagepower terminal 141, overtravel which refers to deviation of the carddetection terminal 143 e from a corresponding position of a socketterminal may be further minimized.

As described above, various effects on the memory cards 100, 100 a, 100b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e may be obtained by adjusting the lengths andthe positions of the respective terminals. It will be obvious to one ofordinary skill in the art to adjust the lengths, positions, and shapesof the respective terminals to obtain other effects based on the abovedescription.

[Structure of Double Shark Fin]

FIGS. 5A through 5C are respectively a front view, a left side view, anda rear view of a memory card 100 according to an embodiment of theinventive concept. FIGS. 6A through 6C are auxiliary views illustratinga structure of the memory card 100 in detail. The memory card 100according to the embodiment of FIGS. 5A through 5A is the same as thememory card 100 according to the embodiment of FIG. 1, and likereference numerals as those of FIG. 1 are used in order not to hinderclarity of the measurements illustrated in FIGS. 5A through 5C.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIGS. 5A through 5C, the memory card 100 mayhave two pairs of edges 121 and 127, and 123 and 125, in which the edgesof each pair face each other. The two pairs of edges 121 and 127, and123 and 125 of the memory card 100 may have an edge 121 at the insertionside where the memory card 100 is inserted into a socket, a first edge123 and a second edge 125 that adjoin the edge 121 at the insertionside, and a third edge 127 that faces and extends in parallel to theedge 121 at the insertion side. As described above, the second edge 125may extend in a direction parallel to the edge 121 at the insertionside.

The first edge 123 may have various shapes, and may include twoprotrusions which are similar in shape to shark fins as illustrated inFIGS. 5A and 5C.

The first edge 123 may include a first portion 123 a that extends inparallel to the second edge 125, a first concave portion 123 b adjacentto the first portion 123 a, a first convex portion 123 c adjacent to thefirst concave portion 123 b, a second concave portion 123 d adjacent tothe first convex portion 123 c, and a second convex portion 123 eadjacent to the second concave portion 123 d.

Here, the portions being adjacent to each other means not only that twoadjacent portions are immediately connected to each other but also thatportions are continuously formed with an interposing portion includedtherebetween. Also, a ‘concave’ segment of the first edge 123 is definedas concave if any two arbitrary points on the segment are connected by astraight line and the straight line is outside the memory card. On thecontrary, a ‘convex’ segment of the first edge 123 is defined as convexif any two arbitrary points on the segment are connected by a straightline and the straight line is on the memory card.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5A, the first concave portion 123 b and thesecond concave portion 123 d may each include an arc, a center of whichis on the opposite side to the memory card 100 with respect to thesecond edge 123.

Also, the first convex portion 123 c and the second convex portion 123 emay each include an arc, a center of which is on the side of the memorycard 100 with respect to the second edge 123.

When referring to FIG. 6A in order to have a closer look at each portionof the first edge 123, the first edge 123 may have a first portion 123 athat extends in parallel to the second edge 125. A length of the firstportion 123 a is determined according to a position of a latch structureinto which the memory card 100 is inserted and coupled, and for example,the length of the first portion 123 a may be about 20% to about 40% of alength of the memory card 100 in the first direction.

Also, the first edge 123 may have the first concave portion 123 badjacent to the first portion 123 a. The first concave portion 123 b isformed such that a straight line connecting any two arbitrary points onthe first concave portion 123 b is outside the memory card 100.

The first concave portion 123 b may include an arc. Selectively, theentire first concave portion 123 b may be an arc. However, the firstconcave portion 123 b does not have to be a single arc but may be acombination of one arc and another curved portion or of two or morearcs.

The first concave portion 123 b having an arc of a radius of 0.80 isillustrated in FIG. 5A, but the embodiment is not limited thereto.

The first edge 123 may have the first convex portion 123 c adjacent tothe first concave portion 123 b. The first convex portion 123 c isformed such that a straight line connecting any two arbitrary points onthe first convex portion 123 c is on the memory card 100.

The first convex portion 123 c may include an arc. Selectively, theentire first convex portion 123 c may be an arc. However, the firstconvex portion 123 c does not have to be a single arc but may be acombination of one arc and another curved portion or of two or morearcs.

The first convex portion 123 c having an arc of a radius of 3.20 isillustrated in FIG. 5A, but the embodiment is not limited thereto.

Also, while the first concave portion 123 b and the first convex portion123 c are directly connected to each other in FIG. 6A, a straightportion may be further interposed therebetween.

The first edge 123 may have the second concave portion 123 d adjacent tothe first convex portion 123 c. The second concave portion 123 d is alsoformed such that a straight line connecting any two arbitrary points onthe second concave portion 123 d is outside the memory card 100.

The second concave portion 123 d may include an arc. Selectively, theentire second convex portion 123 d may be an arc. However, the secondconvex portion 123 d does not have to be a single arc but may be acombination of one arc and another curved portion or of two or morearcs.

The second concave portion 123 d having an arc of a radius of 0.90 andan arc of a radius of 0.40 is illustrated in FIG. 5A, but the presentexemplary embodiment is not limited thereto.

The first edge 123 may include the first convex portion 123 e adjacentto the second concave portion 123 e. The second convex portion 123 e isformed such that a straight line connecting any two arbitrary points onthe second convex portion 123 e is on the memory card 100.

The second convex portion 123 e may include an arc. Selectively, theentire second convex portion 123 e may be an arc. However, the secondconvex portion 123 e does not have to be a single arc but may be acombination of one arc and another curved portion or of two or morearcs.

The second convex portion 123 e having an arc of a radius of 14.00 isillustrated in FIG. 5A, but the embodiment is not limited thereto.

Also, the first edge 123 may include a second portion 123 f that extendsin parallel to the second edge 125 between the second concave portion123 d and the second convex portion 123 e as illustrated in FIG. 6A. Thesecond portion 123 f may extend as a straight line. A length of thesecond portion 123 f may be about 0.1% to about 10% of the length of thememory card 100 in the first direction.

FIGS. 6B and 6C are auxiliary views illustrating arcs included in eachconvex portion and each concave portion.

Referring to FIGS. 5A and 6B, the first convex portion 123 c, the secondconcave portion 123 d, and the second convex portion 123 e which areportions of the first edge 123 may respectively include a first arcportion arc1, a second arc portion arc2, and a third arc portion arc3.

A radius of curvature r1 of the first arc portion arc1 included in thefirst convex portion 123 c may be greater than a radius of curvature r2of the second arc portion arc2 included in the second concave portion123 d. The first convex portion 123 c may include two or more arcportions having different radii of curvature. Also, the second concaveportion 123 d may include two or more arc portions having differentradii of curvature.

A curvature center of the first arc portion arc1 may be on the memorycard 100. That is, the curvature center of the first arc portion arc1may be on the same side as the memory card 100 with respect to the firstedge 123.

Also, a curvature center of the second arc portion arc2 may be outsidethe memory card 100. That is, the curvature center of the second arcportion arc2 may be on the opposite side to the memory card 100 withrespect to the first edge 123.

The radius of curvature r1 of the first arc portion arc1 may be aboutthree to ten times greater than the radius of curvature r2 of the secondarc portion arc2. Also, the radius of curvature r1 of the first arcportion arc1 may be about 10% to about 30% of the length of the memorycard 100 in the first direction. Also, the radius of curvature r2 of thesecond arc portion arc2 may be about 2% to about 15% of the length ofthe memory card 100 in the first direction.

A radius of curvature r3 of the third arc portion arc3 included in thesecond convex portion 123 e may be greater than the radius of curvaturer1 of the first arc portion arc1 included in the first convex portion123 c and the radius of curvature r2 of the second arc portion arc2included in the second concave portion 123 d. The second convex portion123 e may include two or more arc portions having different radii ofcurvature.

As illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 6D, a curvature center of the third arcportion arc3 may be outside the memory card 100. Selectively, acurvature center of a third arc portion arc3 of a second convex portion123 e′ may be on the memory card 100 as illustrated in FIG. 6C. Also, acurvature center of the third arc portion arc3 may be on the same sideas the memory card 100 with respect to the first edge 123.

The radius of curvature r3 of the third arc portion arc3 may be aboutthree to eight times greater than the radius of curvature r1 of thefirst arc portion arc1. Also, the radius of curvature r3 of the thirdarc portion arc3 may be about 70% to about 200% of the length of thememory card 100 in the first direction.

Referring to FIG. 6A, a circumferential length of the first convexportion 123 c may be about 10% to about 30% of the entire externallength of the first edge 123. Also, a circumferential length of thesecond convex portion 123 d may be about 3% to about 10% of the entirecircumferential length of the first edge 123. Also, a circumferentiallength of the second convex portion 123 e may be about 20% to about 50%of the entire circumferential length of the first edge 123.

In FIG. 6A, the entire circumferential length of the first edge 123 maybe a sum of lengths of the first portion 123 a, the first concaveportion 123 b, the first convex portion 123 c, the second concaveportion 123 d, the second portion 123 f, and the second convex portion123 e.

Referring to FIGS. 5A and 6A together, the first concave portion 123 bmay include a fourth arc portion acr4. A radius of curvature r4 of thefourth arc portion arc4 included in the first concave portion 123 b maybe smaller than the radius of curvature r1 of the first arc portion arc1included in the first convex portion 123 c. The first concave portion123 b may include two or more arc portions having different radii ofcurvature.

Also, a curvature center of the fourth arc portion arc4 may be outsidethe memory card 100. In particular, the curvature center of the fourtharc portion arc4 may be on the opposite side to the memory card 100 withrespect to the first edge 123.

The radius of curvature r4 of the fourth arc portion arc4 may be about0.1 to 0.5 times the radius of curvature of the first arc portion arc1.Also, the radius of curvature r4 of the fourth arc portion arc4 may beabout 2% to about 5% of the length of the memory card 100 in the firstdirection.

Also, the first edge 123 may further include a curved segment betweenthe first arc portion arc1 and the second arc portion arc2. The curvedsegment may include a fifth arc portion arc5. The entire curved segmentmay be an arc. However, the curved segment does not have to be a singlearc but may be a combination of one arc and another curved portion or oftwo or more arc5.

The first edge 123 may include a first notch portion 150 that is formedby a portion of the first convex portion 123 c and the second concaveportion 123 d. The second arc portion arc2 may be a portion of the firstnotch portion 150. The first notch portion 150 may operate so as to fixthe memory card 100 to a socket when the memory card 100 is insertedinto the socket.

Also, the memory card 100 may include a second notch portion 152 at anend of the third edge 127. Although the second notch portion 152 isillustrated as being provided between the first edge 123 and the thirdedge 127 in FIGS. 2 and 5C, the second notch portion 152 may also beprovided between the second edge 125 and the third edge 127.

In particular, the second notch portion 152 may be provided between thethird arc portion arc3 and the third edge 127. The second notch portion152 may be recessed in an L-shape as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 5C. Thesecond notch portion 152 may include a sixth arc portion arc6.

Referring to FIGS. 5A and 5B, a withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may beformed on a surface of the memory card 100. The withdrawal auxiliaryportion 160 may allow easy withdrawal of the memory card 100 from asocket after the memory card 100 is inserted into the socket. Thewithdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may be protruded from a surface of thememory card 100. Also, the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may beformed adjacent to the third edge 127.

A side of the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 opposite to the thirdedge 127 may be formed such that a center of the side in a horizontaldirection is concave toward the third edge 127. In particular, thewithdrawal auxiliary portion 160 extends along the third edge 127 and awidth thereof is varied along the third edge 127, and the width of thewithdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may be smallest in a center of thethird edge 127. Also, the width of the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160may be greatest at two ends of the memory card 100. In other words, thewidth of the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may be the greatest atportions adjacent to the first edge 123 and the second edge 125. Thewidth of the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may gradually increasefrom the center of the third edge 127 to the two ends of the third edge127. By configuring the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 in this manner,a contact area having characteristics matching with fingers is improvedwhen withdrawing the memory card 100, and thus, the memory card 100 maybe easily withdrawn.

Also, as illustrated in FIG. 5A, the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160may be formed on an opposite surface to the surface where the second rowterminals 140 are formed. Furthermore, the passive device 170 may beformed in the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160. The passive device 170is described above in detail, and thus additional description thereofwill be omitted here.

Referring to FIGS. 5B and 5C, the edge 121 at the insertion side may bechamfered. The edge 121 at the insertion side may be chamfered over thewidth of the memory card 100. The memory card 100 may be further easilyinserted via the chamfered portion.

As illustrated in FIGS. 5C and 6A, the first convex portion 123 c may bea portion of the protrusion of the first edge 123 together with thesecond concave portion 123 d. In a lateral direction of the first convexportion 123 c, in detail, in a lateral direction of the first arcportion arc1, the second row terminals 140 may be formed. Also, apassive device may be formed in the protrusion, and the passive devicemay be electrically connected to at least one of the second rowterminals 140.

Also, as described above with reference to FIGS. 1 through 3, the secondrow terminals 140 may include the card detection terminal 143 and thesecond voltage power terminal 141. Furthermore, the card detectionterminal 143 and the second voltage power terminal 141 may be connectedto each other as a circuit, with the passive device 170 includedtherebetween.

[Socket Coupling Structure]

FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating a system 200 that uses a memorycard according to embodiments of the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 7, the system 200 includes a socket 220, the memorycard 100 described above with reference to the previous embodiments, acard interface controller 230, and a host or an external device 240. Thesocket 220 may be insertable and contact the memory card 100. The socket220 may be configured to be electrically connected to the first rowterminals 130 and the second row terminals 140 of the memory cards 100,100 a, 100 b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e illustrated in FIGS. 1, 4A through4E and FIGS. 5A through 5C. The card interface controller 230 maycontrol data exchange with the memory card 100 via the socket 220. Thecard interface controller 230 may also be used to store data in thememory card 100. The host 240 may control the card interface controller230.

FIG. 8 is a detailed schematic view illustrating the socket 220 of FIG.7 in consideration of electrical connection to the memory card 100.

Referring to FIG. 8, the socket 220 in which the memory cards 100, 100a, 100 b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e may be inserted is provided.

The socket 220 may include first row-corresponding socket terminals 221corresponding to the first row terminals 130 of the memory cards 100,100 a, 100 b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e, second row-corresponding socketterminals 222 corresponding to the second row terminals 140 of thememory cards 100, 100 a, 100 b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e, and a housing223 accommodating the first row-corresponding socket terminals 221 andthe second row-corresponding socket terminals 222.

The memory cards 100, 100 a, 100 b, 100 c, 100 d, and 100 e may operateby being inserted into the housing 223 to contact the firstrow-corresponding socket terminals 221 and the second row-correspondingsocket terminals 222.

As described with reference to FIG. 7, the socket 220 may beelectrically connected to the card interface controller 230 via whichpower, signals, and/or data may be input to or output from the firstrow-corresponding socket terminals 221 and the second row-correspondingsocket terminals 222.

A socket terminal may be included among the first row-correspondingsocket terminals 221 and the second row-corresponding socket terminals222, wherein the socket is configured such that if a correspondingparticular terminal of the inserted memory card 100, 100 a, 100 b, 100c, 100 d, or 100 e is a ground terminal, the memory card 100, 100 a, 100b, 100 c, 100 d, or 100 e is recognized as a first type card, and if theparticular terminal is not a ground terminal, the inserted memory card100, 100 a, 100 b, 100 c, 100 d, or 100 e is recognized as a second typecard.

While two first row terminals (130) are illustrated in the aboveembodiments, three or more socket terminals may be included in orderthat the first row-corresponding socket terminals 221 may recognize amemory card as a second type card. Also, more socket terminals than thenumber of the second row-corresponding socket terminals 222 may beincluded so that other card types may also be recognized. It will beobvious to one of ordinary skill in the art that the socket according tothe inventive concept is not limited to the number of the illustratedsocket terminals.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a coupling manner between a memory card100 and a socket according to an embodiment of the inventive concept.FIG. 10 is a partial expanded view illustrating a first notch portion150 of the memory card 100 of FIG. 9 in detail.

Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, the memory card 100 may be inserted intothe socket in a direction as indicated by a large arrow. The first notchportion 150 may have two or more surfaces S1 and S2 that are notperpendicular to an insertion direction of the memory card 100.

The two or more surfaces S1 and S2 may be planes or portions of a curvedsurface. As the memory card 100 is inserted, the two or more surfaces S1and S2 may contact a first elastic body 225 which is used to fix thememory card 100. In detail, the two or more surfaces S1 and S2 maycontact a first protrusion 225_p of the first elastic body 225. Thememory card 100 may be mated with the socket 220 by the contact.

As illustrated in FIG. 10, the two or more surfaces S1 and S2 mayrespectively have a first angle s and a second angle an with respect tothe insertion direction of the memory card 100.

The first angle θheand the second angle θndmay be different, and inparticular, the first angle θaymay be greater than the second angle ay.If the two or more surfaces S1 and S2 are portions of a curved surface,an angle between a normal and the insertion direction of the memory card100 on the two or more surfaces S1 and S2 may be used.

Also, any of the first angle θlsand the second angle nd is at 90 degreeswith respect to the insertion direction of the memory card 100.

At least a portion of the first protrusion 225_p may be inserted intothe first notch portion 150 so as to elastically contact the first notchportion 150, thereby fixing the memory card 100 in the housing 223.

The first elastic body 225 may be disposed in a middle portion of thehousing 223 in the insertion direction of the memory card 100.

Also, the second notch portion 152 may be coupled to a second elasticbody 227 of the socket 220. In particular, the second notch portion 152may be coupled to a second protrusion 227_p of the second elastic body227. At least a portion of the second protrusion 227_p may be insertedinto the second notch portion 152 so as to elastically contact thesecond notch portion 152, thereby fixing the memory card 100 in thehousing 223.

The second elastic body 227 may be disposed at an entrance of thehousing 223.

As a mating between the double notch portions and the protrusions isprovided as described above, detachment of the memory card 100 due to anexternal impact may be prevented. Moreover, each protrusion is alignedin a series to guide the memory card 100 in the mating between thedouble notch portions and the protrusions, and thus, insertion of thememory card 100 in an incorrect direction may be effectively prevented.Thus, terminals of the memory card 100 may be matched with socketterminals to be in contact with the socket terminals.

Although the first elastic body 225 and the second elastic body 227 areseparately illustrated in FIG. 9, they may also be formed as a singleelastic body.

As described above with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B, the withdrawalauxiliary portion 160 may be formed along the third edge 127. Thewithdrawal auxiliary portion 160 may have a horizontal extension portion160_h and vertical extension portions 160_v 1 and 160_v 2. Thehorizontal extension portion 160_h may be a portion that extends in awidth direction of the memory card 100, and does not necessarily have toextend in parallel with the third edge 127.

The vertical extension portions 160_v 1 and 160_v 2 may be portions thatextend from two ends of the horizontal extension portion 160_h in theinsertion direction of the memory card 100, and do not necessarily haveto extend in parallel with the second edge 125.

Meanwhile, a groove portion 223_g in which the withdrawal auxiliaryportion 160 may be accommodated may be formed in the housing 223accommodating the memory card 100. The groove portion 223_g may have ashape corresponding to the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 and beconfigured such that the groove portion 223_g holds the verticalextension portions 160_v 1 and 160_v 2 of the withdrawal auxiliaryportion 160 at two sides. Accordingly, the groove portion 223_g mayperform a function of stopping lateral movement of the verticalextension portions 160_v 1 and 160_v 2.

Furthermore, when the withdrawal auxiliary portion 160 is inserted intothe housing 223, the groove portion 223_g may also perform a function ofstopping additional entry of the horizontal extension portion 160_h.

As described above, the first notch portion 150 and the second notchportion 152 are included in the memory card 100 in order to fix thememory card 100 to the socket at two points, and the first elastic body225 and the second elastic body 227 are included in the socket 220, andthus, the memory card 100 may be firmly and stably inserted into thesocket 220. Also, the groove portion 223_g which fixes the withdrawalauxiliary portion 160 prevents lateral movement of the memory card 100so that the terminals of the memory card 100 and the socket terminalsare connected without any error.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view illustrating a structure of a memory card2000 according to the inventive concept.

In detail, a controller 2100 and a memory 2200 may be configured in thememory card 2000 so as to exchange an electrical signal. For example, ifthe controller 2100 gives a command, the memory 2200 may transmit data.The memory card 2000 may be the memory cards described above.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a memory device 3200 including amemory card according to the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 12, the memory device 3200 according to an embodimentof the inventive concept includes a memory card 3210. The memory card3210 may include at least one of the memory cards of the above-describedembodiments. Also, the memory card 3210 may further include asemiconductor memory device in another form (for example, a non-volatilememory device and/or a static random access memory (SRAM) device). Thememory device 3200 may include a memory controller 3220 that controlsdata exchange between a host and the memory card 3210.

The memory controller 3220 may include a processing unit 3222 thatcontrols an overall operation of the memory device 3200. Also, thememory controller 3220 may include an SRAM 3221 that is used as anoperation memory of the processing unit 3222. In addition, the memorycontroller 3220 may further include a host interface 3223 and a memoryinterface 3225. The host interface 3223 may include a data exchangeprotocol between the memory device 3200 and the host. The memoryinterface 3225 may connect the memory controller 3220 and the memorycard 3210. Furthermore, the memory controller 3220 may further includean error correction code (ECC) block 3224. The ECC block 3224 may detectand correct an error of data read from the memory card 3210. Althoughnot illustrated, the memory device 3200 may further include a read onlymemory (ROM) device that stores code data for interfacing with the host.The memory device 3200 may also be implemented by using a solid statedrive (SSD) which may replace a hard disk of a computer system.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic system 4100including a memory card according to the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 13, the electronic system 4100 may include acontroller 4110, an input/output (I/O) device 4210, a memory device4130, an interface 4140, and a bus 4150. The controller 4110, theinput/output device 4120, the memory device 4130, and/or the interface4140 may be coupled to one another via the bus 4150. The bus 4150corresponds to a path through which data is transmitted.

The controller 4110 may include at least one of a microprocessor, adigital signal processor, a microcontroller, and logic devices that mayperform similar functions of these. The input/output device 4120 mayinclude a keypad, a keyboard, a display device or the like.

The memory device 4130 may store data and/or commands. The memory device4130 may include at least one of the memory cards described in the aboveembodiments. Also, the memory device 4130 may further include asemiconductor memory device in another form (for example, a non-volatilememory device and/or an SRAM device). Data may be transmitted to orreceived from a communication network via the interface 4140. Theinterface 4140 may be in a wired or wireless form. For example, theinterface 4140 may include an antenna or a wired/wireless transceiver.Although not illustrated, the electronic system 4100 may furtherinclude, as an operation memory device to improve an operation of thecontroller 4110, a high-speed dynamic random access memory (DRAM) deviceand/or an SRAM device.

The electronic system 4100 may be applied to a personal digitalassistant (PDA), a portable computer, a web tablet, a wireless phone, amobile phone, a digital music player, or any electronic products thattransmit and/or receive information in a wireless environment.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating an implementation example of anetwork 5200 for a server system 5100 that includes an electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment of the inventive concept.

Referring to FIG. 14, a network system 5000 according to an embodimentof the inventive concept may include a server system 5100 and multipleterminals 5300, 5400, and 5500 that are connected via a network 5200.The server system 5100 according to the present embodiment may include aserver 5110 that processes requests received from the terminals 5300,5400, and 5500 connected to the network 5200 and an electronic device5120 that stores data corresponding to the requests received from theterminals 5300, 5400, and 5500. The electronic device 5120 may include,for example, at least one of the memory cards according to theembodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, 4A through 4E, 5A through 5C, and6A through 6C. The electronic device 5120 may be, for example, an SSD.

Meanwhile, the electronic device 5120 according to the inventive conceptdescribed above may be mounted using various types of packages. Forexample, the electronic device 5120 according to the inventive conceptmay be mounted using packages such as a package on package (POP), ballgrid arrays (BGAs), chip scale packages (CSPs), a plastic leaded chipcarrier (PLCC), a plastic dual in-line package (PDIP), a die in wafflepack, a die in wafer form, a chip on board (COB), a ceramic dual in-linepackage (CERDIP), a plastic metric quad flat pack (MQFP), a thin quadflatpack (TQFP), a small outline ingetrated circuit (SOIC), a shrinksmall outline package (SSOP), a thin small outline package (TSOP), athin quad flat pack (TQFP), a system in package (SIP), a multi-chippackage (MCP), a wafer-level fabricated package (WFP), or a wafer-levelprocessed stack package (WSP).

The memory card according to the embodiments of the inventive concepthas not only an excellent design but also allows efficient arrangementof a card detection terminal and a power terminal and a passive deviceconnected to the card detection terminal and the power terminal, therebymaximizing efficient use of an area of the memory card and enabling anelectrically stable power supply.

Also, stress applied to the memory card when the memory card is insertedor ejected may be minimized by forming a notch that is coupled to asocket and has a smooth form, thereby further improving stability of thememory card.

While the inventive concept has been particularly shown and describedwith reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understoodthat various changes in form and details may be made therein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A memory card comprising: a substrate having afirst pair of edges and a second pair of edges, each edge of the firstpair of edges extends in a direction that is substantially perpendicularto each edge of the second pair of edges, the first pair of edgesincluding a first edge and a second edge at opposite side from eachother, and the second pair of edges including a third edge at insertionside of the memory card from which the memory card is inserted into asocket and a fourth edge located at opposite side from the third edge;and a plurality of terminals arranged on a surface of the substrate,wherein the first edge including a first arc portion which has a firstradius of curvature and a second arc portion which has a second radiusof curvature and which is adjacent to the first arc portion, wherein thefirst radius of curvature is greater than the second radius ofcurvature, and wherein the curvature center of the first arc portion ison the memory card and the curvature center of the second arc portion isoutside the memory card.
 2. The memory card of claim 1, wherein thefirst arc portion is immediately connected to the second arc portion. 3.The memory card of claim 1, wherein the first edge further includes athird arc portion having a third radius of curvature, the third radiusof curvature being greater than the first radius of curvature and thesecond radius of curvature.
 4. The memory card of claim 3, wherein thesecond arc portion is sandwiched between the first arc portion and thethird arc portion.
 5. The memory card of claim 3, wherein the curvaturecenter of the second arc portion is on the opposite side from thecurvature center of the first arc portion with respect to the firstedge.
 6. The memory card of claim 3, wherein the first edge includes afirst portion that extends in parallel with the second edge and a firstconcave portion between the first portion and the first arc portion. 7.The memory card of claim 3, wherein the curvature center of the thirdarc portion is on the same side with the curvature center of the firstarc portion with respect to the first edge.
 8. The memory card of claim7, wherein the curvature center of the first arc portion is on thememory card whereas the curvature center of the third arc portion isoutside the memory card.
 9. The memory card of claim 7, wherein thecurvature centers of the first arc portion and the third arc portion areboth on the memory card.
 10. The memory card of claim 1, wherein theplurality of terminals include: a plurality of first row terminals thatare arranged adjacent to the third edge at the insertion side andinclude a first voltage power terminal for applying a first voltage; anda plurality of second row terminals that are spaced apart from theplurality of first row terminals and being located farther from thethird edge than the plurality of first row terminals and include asecond voltage power terminal for applying a second voltage.
 11. Thememory card of claim 10, wherein the plurality of second row terminalsare located apart from the first arc portion in a lateral direction. 12.The memory card of claim 3, wherein the first edge includes the firstarc portion, the second arc portion, and the third arc portion disposedin a sequence towards the third edge.
 13. The memory card of claim 12,wherein the first edge further includes a curved segment between thefirst arc portion and the second arc portion.
 14. The memory card ofclaim 12, wherein the first edge further includes a first notch portionbetween the first arc portion and the third arc portion, and the secondarc portion is a part of the second arc portion.
 15. A memory cardcomprising: a substrate having a first pair of edges and a second pairof edges, each edge of the first pair of edges extends in a directionthat is substantially perpendicular to each edge of the second pair ofedges, the first pair of edges including a first edge and a second edgeat opposite side from each other, and the second pair of edges includinga third edge at insertion side of the memory card from which the memorycard is inserted into a socket and a fourth edge located at oppositeside from the third edge; and a plurality of terminals that are arrangedon a surface of the substrate, wherein the third edge of the second pairof edges at the insertion side extends in a first direction that issubstantially perpendicular to the first edge and the second edge, andthe first edge includes a first portion that extends in parallel to thesecond edge, a first concave portion adjacent to the first portion, afirst convex portion adjacent to the first concave portion, a secondconcave portion adjacent to the first convex portion, and a secondconvex portion adjacent to the second concave portion, the second convexportion protruding outward at an angle so as not to parallel the secondedge, and wherein the first edge further includes a third concaveportion in a form of a notch, which is adjacent to the second concaveportion.
 16. The memory card of claim 15, wherein a circumferentiallength of the first convex portion is about 10% to about 30% of theentire circumferential length of the first edge.
 17. The memory card ofclaim 16, wherein a circumferential length of the second concave portionis about 3% to about 10% of the entire circumferential length of thefirst edge.
 18. The memory card of claim 16, wherein a circumferentiallength of the second convex portion is about 20% to about 50% of theentire circumferential length of the first edge.
 19. The memory card ofclaim 16, wherein the first convex portion includes at least one arcportion and the at least one arc portion has a radius of curvature ofabout 10% to about 30% of the length of the memory card in the firstdirection.
 20. The memory card of claim 16, wherein the second convexportion includes at least one arc portion and the at least one arcportion has a radius of curvature of about 70% to about 200% of thelength of the memory card in the first direction.
 21. The memory card ofclaim 20, wherein the second concave portion includes at least one arcportion and the at least one arc portion in the second concave portionhas a radius of curvature of about 2% to about 15% of the length of thememory card in the first direction.